Still Life
Commencement across Penn State: Spring 2012
Spring commencement 2012 under way
Penn State, Moroccan students problem-solve together
Finals Week Spring Semester 2012
Children explore career options at University Park
Painting the Lines at Beaver Stadium
Did They Get It Right? - RedTails
Iconic Penn State elm taken down over spring break 2012
We ... are Penn State (December 19, 2011)
Disease stricken matching elm tree slated for removal
Penn State's creamery, from the cow to the cone
The way melanoma cells use the immune system to spread and develop into lung tumors may lead to a therapy to decrease development of these tumors, according to Penn State researchers. "Melanoma is the most aggressive and metastatic form of skin cancer," said Gavin Robertson, professor of pharmacology, pathology, dermatology and surgery in the Penn State College of Medicine. "Therefore, identifying proteins and molecular mechanisms that regulate metastasis is important for developing drugs to treat this disease." (more)
A research team led by associate professor Gavin Robertson at the
College of Medicine has developed a new drug based on the anti-cancer compounds in cruciferous vegetables. Tests in mice suggest that this new drug is both safer and more potent than conventional therapies in targeting the most deadly form of skin cancer. (more)
Compounds extracted from green vegetables such as broccoli and cabbage could be a potent drug against melanoma, according to cancer researchers. Tests on mice suggest that these compounds, when combined with selenium, target tumors more safely and effectively than conventional therapy. "There are currently no drugs to target the proteins that trigger melanoma," said Gavin Robertson, associate professor of pharmacology, pathology and dermatology, Penn State College of Medicine. (more)
Did you know that May is melanoma month and that the number of people diagnosed with melanoma -- the deadliest of skin cancers -- increases by about 4 percent each year with one person dying from this disease every hour? At the current rate of increase, it is predicted that melanoma will affect 1 in 50 U.S. citizens by 2010. Unlike people diagnosed with other common cancers, including prostate and breast cancer, people with melanoma have roughly the same therapies available and chance for survival as they did 30 years ago, according to the latest edition of The Medical Minute, a service of the Penn State Hershey Medical Center. (more)
Researchers have discovered how a mole develops into melanoma by showing the interaction of two key proteins involved in 60-70 percent of tumors. The Penn State scientists also demonstrate that therapeutic targeting of these proteins is necessary for drugs to effectively treat this deadly form of cancer. (more)
